Can carriers



April 18, 1967 w. M. TQLAAS 3,314,590

CAN CARRIERS Filed June 30, 1964 .44 32 fil m 52\ 1i? R j @1 5 WILL/AM M Tom/4s AHORNEY United States Patent 3,314,590 CAN CARRIERS William M. Tolaas, St. Paul, Miran, assignor to Waldorf Paper Products Company, St. Paul, Minn, a corporation of Minnesota Filed June 30, 1964, Ser. No. 379,098

3 Claims. (Cl. 229-40) This invention relates to an improvement in can carriers and deals particularly With a paperboard carton which is cut and scored to encircle a group of cans to facilitate the carrying thereof.

Many millions of can carrying cartons have been produced. In many instances, these carriers comprise a sleeve of paperboard which tightly encircles two side by side rows of cans. The ends of the sleeve are provided with tabs foldably connected thereto and which are folded into the opposed recessed ends of the cans for retaining the cans in the sleeve. Many such carriers are of the general form illustrated in the patent to Raymond A. Cote, issued Dec. 6, 1960, as Patent 2,963,148. In this patent, the ends of the paperboard strip forming the sleeve are provided with flanges 'which extend in face contact and are secured together between the two rows of cans, these flanges are provided with retaining strips or flanges foldably connected thereto which engage the edges of the chimes of the cans to hold the cans in proper position.

While carriers of this type are being successfully produced in tremendous volume, some difliculty is experienced in adhering the flanges in face contact to hold the sleeve in tubular form. If the adhesive fails, the sleeve comes apart and the contents drop out. The difflculty is accentuated by the fact that the carrier is usually lifted by extending a finger and thumb through the finger holes in the panel opposite the flange panels. It is an object of the present .invention to provide a carrier of the general type disclosed in the previous patent, but which is provided with a lock which hold the sleeve closed. These locks may either supplement the glued joint or else be used to replace it.

A feature of the present invention resides in the provision of locking tongues which are defined by cut lines in one of the flanges described above and to provide apertures or potential apertures in the panel adjoining the other of these flanges into which the locking tongues may extend.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a series of spaced tabs which are cut from the opposed flanges and which may overlap in face contact when the carrier is in closed condition in order to hold the two ends of the carrier strip properly aligned.

These and other objects and novel features of the present invention will be more clearly and fully set forth in the following specification and claims.

In the drawings forming a part of the specification:

FIGURE 1 is a bottom perspective view of a carrier showing the construction thereof.

FIGURE 2 is a bottom plan view of the carrier shown in FIGURE 1. 7

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of a detailed portion of the bottom panels in partially folded position, the can retaining strips being hinged upwardly to show the flange construction.

FIGURE 4 is a view similar to FIGURE 3, but showing the opposite side of the flange structure.

FIGURE 5 is an end view of a portion of the carrier showing the manner in which the can retaining strips engage the cans.

FIGURE 6 is a diagrammatic view of the blank from which the carrier is formed.

The blank is best formed as illustrated in FIGURE 6, and is illustrated, in general, by the letter A. The blank A includes a top panel 10 which is hingedly connected along parallel fold lines 11 and 12 to side wall panels '13 and 14. The side wall panels 13 and 14 are connected along the fold lines 15 and 16 to bottom panels 17 and 79 respectively. The bottom panels 17 and 19 are substantially one-half the width of the top panel 10. In other words, the top panel 10 is designed to be of substantially equal width to twice the diameter of the cans B and to extend over two side by side rows of these cans, while the bottom panels 17 and 19 are designed to extend beneath a single row of cans.

Flanges 20 and 21 are hingedly connected to the edges of the bottom panels 17 and 19 respectively along fold lines 22 and 23. The flanges 20 and 21 are hingedly connected to can retaining strips 24 and 25 along fold lines 26 and 27 respectively. All of the fold lines which have been described are parallel and extend transversely of the elongated blank A.

The top panel 10 may be provided with spaced aper tures 29 which are properly located to permit a thumb and finger to be inserted through the openings for lifting the carrier and its contents. The top panel 10 is also provided with can retaining tabs 30 which are hingedly connected thereto along fold lines 31. The tabs 30 are folded inwardly through substantially and extend into the recessed ends of the cans to retain the cans within the sleeve.

The bottom panels 17 and 19 are provided with similar can retaining tabs 3-2 hingedly connected thereto along fold lines 33. The tabs 32 are folded upwardly through approximately 180 to overlie adjoining portions of the bottom panels and to engage into the recessed lower ends of the cans to retain the cans within the sleeve.

Generally T-shaped locking tongues 34 are defined by cut lines in the flange 21, the locking tongues 34 being connected to the bottom panel 19 along the line of fold 23. The locking tongues 34 may include a pair of short fold lines 35 extending across the cross member of the T from the juncture between the cross member and the stern of the T in converging relation. The purpose of the fold lines 35 is to simplify the insertion of the locking tongues through an opening which is narrower than the cross bar portion of the tocking tongues.

If desired, short projecting tabs 36 may interrupt the fold lines 22 and 23 in opposed relation at opposite ends of the blank, the tabs 36 being defined by generally U- shaped cut lines terminating on these lines of fold 22 and 23. These tabs 36 remain substantially in the planes of the bottom panels 17 and -19 when the flanges 20 and 21 are folded upwardly into face contact and, as indicated in FIGURE 4 of the drawings, the tabs 36 of one bottom panel, such as the panel 19, extend through the openings 37 formed in the flange 21 hinged to the opposite bottom panel 19. The similar tabs 36 on the bottom panel 19 merely underlie the bottom surface of the bottom panel 17.

The fold line 22 connecting the bottom panel 17 to the flange 20 is further interrupted by a pair of U-shaped cut lines 39, the base of which extends along the fold line 22, and the sides of which extend into the bottom panel 17 in right angular relation to the fold line 22. Short fold lines 40 extend bet-ween the ends of the U- shaped cut lines 39 and define substantially rectangular tabs 41 which may be folded out of the piane of the bottom panel 17 by hinging along the fold lines 40.

In the closing of the blank about the cans B, the flanges 20 and 21 are folded between the rows of cans B While the retaining strips 26 and 27 which are hinged thereto are folded into substantially face contact with the flanges to which they are hinged. In this respect, FIGURES 3 and 4 are not true views, as the retaining strips are never in this specific position. When the cans. are enclosed, the locking tongues 34 overlies the tabs and are centered with respect thereto. By applying upward pressure against the tabs 34, they are forced through the opening defined by the cut lines 39, and hinge the tabs 41 upwardly until the ends of the cross bar of the T-shaped locking tongues pass the edges of the cut lines 39. At this time, the ends of the cross bar of the locking tongues 34 fold back toward their normal position, and the locking tongues are locked in place in the manner illustrated in FIGURE 4 of the drawings.

The locking tongues 34 and tabs 41 are spaced apart a distance substantially equal to the diameter of one of the contained cans and on opposite sides of the longitudinal center lines. This arrangement positions the locks in open areas between adjacent cans.

During the sealing operation, adhesives may be applied between the flanges 20 and 2 1 or, alternatively, the locks 34 may be relied upon to hold the carrier in closed position. The tabs 41 engage the upper surfaces of the locking tongues 34 after they are inserted through the openings defined by the cut lines 39 and tend to hold the locking tongues relatively flat.

In accordance with the patent statutes I have described the principals of construction and operation of my carrier; and while I have endeavored to set forth the best embodiment thereof, I desired to have it understood that obvious changes may be made within the scope of the following claims without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I claim: 7 1. A can carrier for containing a group of cans arranged in two side by side rows, the carrier including:

an elongated strip of paperboard cut and creased to provide a central top panel to overlie a group of cans,

side wall panels hinged to opposite edges of the top panel adapted to extend along opposite sides of said group of cans,

bottom panels adapted to overlie the lower ends of one of said row of cans,

flanges hinged to the edges of said bottom panels and adapted to extend between the two side rows of cans in face contact,

can retaining strips hinged to the edges of said flanges and adapted to be counterfolded to extend between said flanges and said cans to engage against chimes of said cans,

locking tongues defined by cut lines in one of said flanges connected to one bottom panel along the line of fold connecting said one flange to said bottom panel,

said tongues extending intermediate said line of fold connecting said one flange to said bottom panel and said line of fold connecting one can retaining strip to said one of said flanges,

said top panel being substantially twice the width of each said bottom panel,

the other of said bottom panels having apertures therethrough adjacent the other of said flanges into which said locking tongues engage.

2. The structure of claim 1 and in which said locking tongues are of T-shaped form, with the cross-bar of the T of greater width than said apertures, and in which the stern of the T is hinged to said one bottom panel.

3. The structure of claim 1 and including a pair of converging fold lines extending across the cross-bar of the T from the juncture between the crossbar and the stem.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,926,782 3/1960 Andre 220--1 12 X 3,120,903 2/1964 Cote 220-112 3,128,010 4/ 1964- Forrer 2201 12 GEORGE O. RALSTON, Primary Examiner. 

1. A CAN CARRIER FOR CONTAINING A GROUP OF CANS ARRANGED IN TWO SIDE BY SIDE ROWS, THE CARRIER INCLUDING: AN ELONGATED STRIP OF PAPERBOARD CUT AND CREASED TO PROVIDE A CENTRAL TOP PANEL TO OVERLIE A GROUP OF CANS, SIDE WALL PANELS HINGED TO OPPOSITE EDGES OF THE TOP PANEL ADAPTED TO EXTEND ALONG OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID GROUP OF CANS, BOTTOM PANELS ADAPTED TO OVERLIE THE LOWER ENDS OF ONE OF SAID ROW OF CANS, FLANGES HINGED TO THE EDGES OF SAID BOTTOM PANELS AND ADAPTED TO EXTEND BETWEEN THE TWO SIDE ROWS OF CANS IN FACE CONTACT, CAN RETAINING STRIPS HINGED TO THE EDGES OF SAID FLANGES AND ADAPTED TO BE COUNTERFOLDED TO EXTEND BETWEEN SAID FLANGES AND SAID CANS TO ENGAGE AGAINST CHIMES OF SAID CANS, LOCKING TONGUES DEFINED BY CUT LINES IN ONE OF SAID FLANGES CONNECTED TO ONE BOTTOM PANEL ALONG THE LINE OF FOLD CONNECTING SAID ONE FLANGE TO SAID BOTTOM PANEL, SAID TONGUES EXTENDING INTERMEDIATE SAID LINE OF FOLD CONNECTING SAID ONE FLANGE TO SAID BOTTOM PANEL AND SAID LINE OF FOLD CONNECTING ONE CAN RETAINING STRIP TO SAID ONE OF SAID FLANGES, SAID TOP PANEL BEING SUBSTANTIALLY TWICE THE WIDTH OF EACH SAID BOTTOM PANEL, THE OTHER OF SAID BOTTOM PANELS HAVING APERTURES THERETHROUGH ADJACENT THE OTHER OF SAID FLANGES INTO WHICH SAID LOCKING TONGUES ENGAGE. 